Goldberg Cos. is putting finishing touches on Four Seasons IV in Beachwood

Photo by STAN BULLARD
Eric Bell, left, and Jordan Goldberg, the principals and third-generation operators of the family-owned Goldberg Cos., are devoting a lot of their time to Four Seasons IV.

Behind the gated and guarded entrance of Four Seasons apartments near Beachwood Place mall in Beachwood, construction workers are finishing the final phase of the apartment complex — 25 years after the prior phase opened.

Jordan Goldberg and Eric Bell, principals and third-generation operators of the family-owned Goldberg Cos. real estate firm, are devoting themselves and several million dollars to making sure it was worth the wait.

Consider what they have to work with — and the bar they have to surpass in a time with different tastes as apartment development surges in Northeast Ohio at a scale not seen since the 1970s.

The previous building at Four Seasons shows the high-water mark of prior multifamily development in the region. Referred to as Four Seasons III, that structure opened in 1989 at 26600 George Zeiger Dr. and boasts a nine-story glass atrium. The opulent atrium is done in an Italian renaissance style with ornate balconies and a sky-blue wall. Penthouse suites have views of the horizon; its suites exceed most in the region in size, and its in-suite laundries were the height of luxury in the late-'80s.

Now construction crews are nearing the final lap on the fourth building in the Four Seasons complex.

Construction workers are laboring on the new, five-story structure's roof as well as finishing the interiors of what will be a 143-suite addition to the complex. The first suites will be available for residents in July, and others will come in the following months.

On a recent tour, the brothers-in-law outlined how they are crafting the complex for today's market. For one, the suites are about 20% smaller than those in the prior building.

“People today may not have as much furniture,” Goldberg said.

The new suites have doors as high as 8 feet and ceilings as high as 10 feet. All the units have patios or balconies to accent easy outdoor access and laundries and bathrooms rivaling those of new homes with large showers and bathtubs. Kitchens are outfitted with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops. Unlike older buildings with separate kitchens, these open into the living room. The islands also have a countertop that can serve as a table typical in today's homes.

Bell said the two and Goldberg Co. staffers are constantly fine-tuning suites as they go along.

“We decided we needed another inch on the countertop to be able to eat at the island,” he said. “We changed it.”

Three-bedroom suites in the fourth phase include two master bedrooms.

Also different are the community's amenities. Instead of a party center, the new building has a pub-style game room that residents will be able to reserve for parties or gather together in the evenings, as well as a business center like that in hotels, Goldberg said. A 2,500-square-foot fitness center will include a yoga room and look out over landscaped grounds that include a pond and outdoor kitchen. A walking trail is going in with this phase, and the complex's existing pool and tennis courts are being renovated.

However, there is one thing that tenants will not be able to do at the new Four Seasons: smoke.

Smoking is not allowed in lobbies, public areas or even inside suites. Goldberg said the company will designate a smoking area at a yet-to-be-determined site on the premises.

“We've had this at our new communities in North Carolina. It's been well accepted,” Goldberg said.

In an apartment, second-hand smoke may seep into halls and other suites. After a tenant who smokes leaves, the company spends about $1,000 painting and deodorizing suites, he said.

“That adds up,” Goldberg said. “As a company, we build for 50 years (of ownership). We don't build to sell.”

There is one way the last act in Four Seasons is unlikely to surpass some suites in its predecessor: the rent.

Suites at the third building in Four Seasons command some of the highest rents in Greater Cleveland, Goldberg said, and due to its larger suites, rents there may exceed those in the newest phase. That is virtually unheard of in Northeast Ohio, where new, market-rate projects almost universally snag top-of-market rents.

However, the rent is definitely for the upscale crowd.

Rents range from $1,500 for the smallest one bedroom to as much as $3,200 for a unit with three bedrooms.

The attention to detail at the latest phase of Four Seasons is what onlookers expected, said Ralph McGreevy, executive vice president of the Northeast Ohio Apartment Association trade group.

“I know they studied the market to add the best amenities. Not everyone does that,” McGreevy said of Goldberg Cos. “George Zeiger Drive in Beachwood is one area that can use more apartments due to demand, but there's no land available.”

That is also true in Goldberg's case. The fourth phase of Four Seasons is its last.

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